CITY OF EDGEWOOD
COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
April 20, 2026
6:30 PM
CALL TO ORDER —Mayor Link called the meeting of the Edgewood City Council to order at 6:30 pm. The
following council members were present: Ben Barlage, Joe Messmer, W. Jamie Ruehl, Bridget Grady Spears, Scott
Spille, and Rob Thelen, Also, in attendance were City Administrator Brian Dehner, City Clerk Belinda Nitschke,
and City Attorney Frank Wichmann. Other staff members present: Fire Chief Tom Dickman, Police Sergeant Jarod
Buchanan, General Services Director Rick Lunnemann, and Program Coordinator Lucas Elam. Council member Jeff
Schreiver was absent.
INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
CITIZENS DESIRING RECOGNITION ON LEGISLATIVE MATTERS NOT ON THE AGENDA —None
APPROVAL OF AGENDA ~ Approved
APPROVAL OF MINUTES -—April 6, 2026 Council Meeting Minutes – Mr. Thelen made a motion to approve
the April 6, 2026, minutes as written; second by Mr. Barlage. Motion passed: 6 ayes —0 nays.
REPORT/PRESENTATIONS —Brandstetter and Carroll – Dudley Road Update, Greg Bryant —An update on the
project was passed out to council. KYTC approved the plans in July 2024 but have requested paperwork updates.
The historical and environmental reviews have been completed. Ecological review was received and approved by
KYTC, They are still waiting for approval of the historical properties which was submitted to KYTC and that no
historical properties would be affected by the project. The projected bid date would be this fall. Mr, Dehner stated
that the bid date would also be affected by the completion of the easements and approval from KYTC but the
projected start date could be in the spring depending on contractor’s schedules. There are thirteen (13) temporary
easements for the project. Mr. Ruehl suggested that a timeline be part of the bid, Mr. Dehner stated that several
council members asked for penalties be added for missing deadlines, Mr. Dehner asked Mr. Bryant to contact KYTC
for any restrictions for federal grants on penalties, etc. Dr. Spille asked to add in approval for Saturday, Sunday and
overnight work schedules to be expeditious to the timeline. Mr. Dehner stated that there cannot be any permanent
road closures, single lane closures with flaggers are permitted and can close the road for five (5) minutes with a
maximum of ten (10). Council discussed options to help the contractor expedite the project and Mr. Dehner
cautioned that some of the suggestions could raise the price of the project.
Mayor’s Report —Mayor Link congratulated Ms. Belinda Nitschke on receiving the 2026 Kentucky Municipal Clerk
of the Year Award at the KMCA Spring Conference in Paducah, KY last week. Mr. Dehner stated that this honor is
very deserved and that there are approximately 300 city clerks across the state and a very distinguished award. The
Mayor’s Group met this past Saturday at Liberty Hall. Mayor Link stated that Belinda’s brother arranged for Mayor
Boone, Mayor of Rabbit Hash to attend the meeting. The legislative session is over, Mayor Link thanked Senator
Chris McDaniel, Representative Kim Banta, and Representative Stephanie Dietz on their hard work, working with
the city and especially putting aside Senate Bill 9 —Airbnb Bill. Mayor Link also thanked Mr. Dehner, Senator
McDaniel and Representative Dietz for their work on the House Bill to rehire retired firefighters the bill was pulled
but will be brought back next session.
Staff Reports —City Clerk, Fire, General Services, Police and Recreation — Dr. Spille asked Mr. Lunnemann if he
could look at harmonizing the number of posts for signs. Mr. Lunnemann stated that he has discussed with his crew
on reducing sign clutter and consolidate as many signs as they can. Mr. Rueh! asked about a seven-figure fraud
against one of our citizens. How did the department solve this fraud case? Sgt. Buchanan stated that the
department’s excellent detective work by Detective Alejandro and utilization of the Flock cameras. Detective
Alejandro used the description of the vehicle to find the license plate number and identify one of the suspects in the
case, Sgt. Buchanan stated that there are people who do not live in the city that wish to do our citizens harm and the
police can use this added technology to help identify them and protect citizens. Mr. Dehner stated that the city has
received $816,000 for the Locust Hollow Landslide project.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS —None
NEW BUSINESS —None
ORDINANCES, MUNICIPAL ORDERS, AND RESOLUTIONS —Ordinance 2026-04-02 —1977-24 Zoning
Text & Map Repeal and New Adoption —1* reading: Mr. Wichmann read the following: ANORDINANCE OF
THE CITY OF EDGEWOOD, IN KENTON COUNTY KENTUCKY REPEALING AND REPLACING
THE OFFICIAL ZONING TEXT AND MAP OF THE CITY OF EDGEWOOD NO. 1977-24, AS
PREVIOUSLY AMENDED FROM TIME TO TIME; AND SIMULTANEOUSLY ADOPTING A NEW
ZONING TEXT AND MAP AS THE OFFICIAL ZONING TEXT AND MAP OF THE CITY OF
EDGEWOOD, KENTUCKY.
Mayor Link stated that council has received the proposed FY2026-2027 budget and the budget discussions will start
at the next meeting.
Mr. Lunnemann gave an update to the road striping project and areas in which the striping will need to be redone
such as Lyndale and Edgewood Road. Mr. Lunnemann stated that the road project at Whippoorwill started this week
and will be complete in approximately 45 days. Mr. Lunnemann stated that the city received bids on Wild Rose,
Martha and Maple Road and will begin this project in early May. Dr. Spille provided several locations where cross
walks needed to be restriped.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
-Annual Memorial Day Ceremony is May 25″ in Freedom Park at 10:am, drop off any old flags to the
city building to be disposed of properly if you cannot make it to the ceremony.
-Reminder the City-Wide Yard Sale has been moved to August to coincide with the World’s Longest
Yard Sale.
-City Shred Event will be held at Freedom Park on June 6″ from 9am —12pm.
Dr. Spille has been traveling a lot and wanted to express his appreciation to the General Services Crew and their
leadership for their hard work and the excellent condition and quality of our roads.
ADJOURNMENT
Dr. Spille made a motion to adjourn at 7:31 p.m.; second by Mr. Ruehl. Motion passed: 6 ayes —0 nays.
Mayor John D. Link
Attest:
Belinda Nitschke/City Clerk
Please contact the City for offical copies of the minutes.